Diego Simeone gives his verdict on the Messi vs Ronaldo debate

Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone has clarified his stance on the Messi-Ronaldo debate, stating that he reckons that Lionel Messi is the superior player when compared to Cristiano Ronaldo.

To put things into context, Simeone’s conversation with his assistant German Burgos was leaked last month. That discussion was leaked post-Argentina’s disastrous 3-0 defeat to Croatia where Simeone appeared to have suggested that he preferred Ronaldo to the Barcelona star.

The Atletico Madrid boss seemingly sounded despair in the wake of his country’s morale-breaking loss, and his conversation with Burgos stole the headlines.

However, as the dust of the World Cup has settled right now, Simeone provided more insight into his opinions regarding the two players. He reportedly said, “If I had to choose between Messi and Ronaldo then most likely I would choose Messi. Yes, I said [Ronaldo] on the video, but the conversation was between me and [Atleti assistant] German Burgos, talking about football as everyone talks about it.

'When I talked about Messi and Ronaldo it wasn't from the perspective of who is the best in the world.

'I just meant that if you have the chance to sign one of them for a normal club, with normal players, Ronaldo would probably fit in better.

'But with Messi, surrounded by great players, Messi is better than Ronaldo.'

Simeone probably could judge these two players quite well, having prepared his team to face Messi and Ronaldo ever since 2011. His work as the manager of Atletico Madrid has been lauded by all and sundry.

Under the former Argentine international, Atletico was successful in breaking the Barca-Real duopoly over the La Liga title by leading Atletico to glory in 2013-14.

Currently, Ronaldo’s move to Juventus means that the direct competition between the two players will be broken. The Portuguese international will endure a new challenge, preparing to play in a new league after having represented the likes of Sporting CP, Manchester United and Real Madrid in the past.

Messi will lead the Barcelona side and would hope to progress further in the Champions League this time around. As for Simeone, it could be said that he provided a nice clarification for his earlier statements.